


Grace

by sp00kworm



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Animal care, Battle, Canon-Typical Violence, Caring for Horses and Pegasus, Character Development, F/M, Love Confessions, Marriage Proposal, Post-Time Skip, Pre-Time Skip, Spoilers, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-10-17 09:17:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20618630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sp00kworm/pseuds/sp00kworm
Summary: Lorenz sighed inside the stables. He had made sure Marianne wasn’t lingering with the horses before sitting in the stall. His horse huffed, stomping her foot against the straw bedding over the cobbles. They had been out for a small walk around the fields just outside of Garreg Mach. He knew it was dangerous, and that he was lucky he wasn’t caught breaking curfew by the Professor, but he couldn’t find it in himself to feel guilty. The young man had needed the air, and the moment away from everyone. He didn’t want anyone to see him cry. Then she made herself known...and something was never the same after she wiped away the tears.





	Grace

The heir to House Gloucester was, simply put, a pompous noble. Galivanting his way around the grounds and town, he was always chatting to women, offering flowers and trying to swindle his way into dates with the finest noble women. He was a hooligan, if ever Byleth had seen one, and the Professor made sure to put this across to his student whenever he could. Lorenz of course, disagreed with his points, claiming the attention to be valid and wanted. It was not. It never was. Byleth only asked that he stop speaking to the girls so harshly. They weren’t wanting of his endeavours, nor were any of the girls, perhaps bar Dorothea, looking for husbands during their studies. It didn’t really get through the young lord’s thick skull. His grades were still impeccable, and Lorenz overachieved despite his tendencies with the women. Byleth simply encouraged him to think on other things, yet the noble was somewhat cowed by his blunt forwardness. It was upsetting to him to think that the women and girls despised him when he was simply doing his duty to his house.

No-one understood it. Surely the other nobles did? It was his duty to find a suitable wife and continue his bloodline with their crest. It was hard enough now, with the noble blood diluting and the crests being harder and harder to bear. It was a troubling time. Lorenz knew that and had known it from being small. He had to have a suitable wife. That was the end of it. He had to make his family proud.

Lorenz sighed inside the stables. He had made sure Marianne wasn’t lingering with the horses before sitting in the stall. His horse huffed, stomping her foot against the straw bedding over the cobbles. They had been out for a small walk around the fields just outside of Garreg Mach. He knew it was dangerous, and that he was lucky he wasn’t caught breaking curfew by the Professor, but he couldn’t find it in himself to feel guilty. The young man had needed the air, and the moment away from everyone. He didn’t want anyone to see him cry. His mare snuffled softly, and Lorenz ran his hand through her black hair as he sniffled into his shirt sleeve, the cravat choking him almost as he cried.

He quietened himself as he heard someone humming. A mount whinnied and Lorenz covered his mouth before wiping his eyes on his white shirt sleeve. After taking a breath he opened his mare’s gate and peered down the aisle of other stalls. He caught sight of a very familiar looking girl then, down the stables and in her own stall. She smiled as she ran her fingers over a pegasus’ mane. Her other hand held a comb, and she ran it gently through the creature’s hair before placing it away and setting her fingers to work, braiding the section loosely, tying the end off with a deep purple ribbon. She was engrossed in her work and didn’t notice him until he was stood outside of her stall. As the woman turned, she let out a gasp and jumped. Lorenz cringed at the noise before smiling, flicking his hair from his face as he turned on the façade of carefree noble.

“Surely you are not in such awe of I that you cannot speak?” Lorenz smiled and peered over at her handy work with the Pegasus. It was a male, wings broad and strong, yet it’s snooty persona shone through as the animal looked at him with scornful eyes. He was evidently interrupting something that the Pegasus enjoyed.

You felt your cheeks flush a little with embarrassment, having been caught cooing and playing with an animal that everyone viewed as a tool, and by Lorenz no less. The rumour mill would churn viciously with Lorenz at the helm, “No, Master Gloucester, I was just looking after Percy’s coat. He got dusty and dirty in the last fight.”

“He is a magnificent creature.” Lorenz complimented, looking over the bows before he sighed, “And you are a talented woman! Such skill with hair.” The young man leaned over the stall and noticed the lack of uniform with a furrowed brow, “You are not enrolled at the academy?” Lorenz asked, lilac eyes widening with interest.

This was maybe the longest one of the academy students had ever spoken to you. You were a Knight’s apprentice, the dashing Falcon Knight taking you under her wing after seeing you looking after one of the injured Pegasus on their breeder’s farm. And orphan and now an apprentice to the most prestigious Pegasus Knight within the Knights of Seiros.

“I’m an apprentice under Primrose.” You confessed quietly, “She is a Falcon Knight and leader of the Pegasus Knights.” Your eyes went starry as you spoke of your Master.

“I have seen her in the courtyard. Her form and grace are unrivalled! Her wit as well. She is a fine woman, for a knight that is.” His off handed comment made you frown.

“Just because she is not noble, doesn’t make her achievements any less, Lorenz.” You flushed with anger at the young man, turning away from your Pegasus.

The man scoffed, “I am not insulting her, how dare you suggest that I, a noble, would fall to that level. It is slanderous.” He pulled away from the stall, manners forgotten as he scowled at the young Pegasus Knight.

“I will leave you to your grooming. Good evening, Miss.” Lorenz bowed at the waist, face twisted in upset as he moved to leave, pushing his hair back behind his ear, before realising he had fallen into the nervous habit once more.

With a thump, you threw your grooming tools on the floor and followed the noble, grabbing the back of his shirt in your fist, rubbing dust into the pristine white colour, “Then why were you in here in the first place? You come in here for hours sometimes. I heard you…” The boy stiffened in your grasp, “I heard you crying…” You whispered softly before letting go of his shirt, “I shouldn’t have been listening, I know, but its always after you go out riding…You can talk to me about it, you know…Even if you don’t want to, you can always just come here and hide.”

Lorenz clenched his jaw before looking over his shoulder at you, purple eyes burning with anger. He was humiliated. He felt completely and utterly humiliated, and by a commoner no less. An orphan. He pulled himself away and turned around, face red and eyes burning with fresh tears, “You don’t know anything!” He covered his mouth after the vicious words fell from his lips, “I…I apologise milady. I did…” He swallowed thickly before looking to the side and sighing, “Don’t…Don’t tell anyone about it, please?”

Your eyes widened as the noble drew closer, “I promise. But my offer still stands. You can talk to me…Without any of the stupid speech too if you would like?” You smiled at the young man and watched his mouth open and close like a goldfish.

Lorenz coughed, recovering the composure that he was known for, “I appreciate your offer, and I will accept it. I will…see you tomorrow?” He offered his hand before curling his fingers back towards himself. He smiled awkwardly as you caught his hand and shook it.

“Deal!” You turned back to your Pegasus’ stall and waved gently, “See you tomorrow…”

“Lorenz…Call me Lorenz. You don’t need to use titles between us.” A ghost of a smile flickered over the noble’s face as he addressed you simply by your first name.

You nodded before taking up Percy’s comb once more, “Then I’ll see you tomorrow, Lorenz.”

He didn’t see you for some time after the siege of Garreg Mach. His family was pledged into the Empire before he could raise a word with his father, and he spent years atop his horse seeking to quell the rebellions against his father’s weak decision. It was better to side with the winning force, he had told him as he came out of the empresses’ throne room. Lorenz had disagreed after some time thinking on it, and only disagreed more when he faced his teacher’s blade. The man was radiant in the dawn light, his face as cold as he remembered, yet the blade never reached him, a lance shattering before his face, the soft flutter of Pegasus wings dancing over his lavender coloured hair.

“Professor! It is Lorenz! Please! Stay your blade!” You landed softly over him, and Lorenz felt his mount heave him backwards.

He had fallen from his saddle unceremoniously, his leg tangled in his stirrups, the armour over his leg wrapped with leather and stuck fast. Lorenz prayed the mare didn’t spook and haul him through the last of the battle raging behind them. The cut over his face burned with gravel in it and Lorenz reached for his leg, pulling the leather free of his greaves before he managed to reign in his horse.

He whispered softly to the mare, looking at the cut on her flank before he looked to the bright white Pegasus, wings spread as a woman he had not seen in years defended him.

“Professor, please!” You cried, blood dripping into your armour from a gash. The lance you had used to defend him had exploded with the impact of the Sword of The Creator, and the pieces flashed back into your skin, cutting you in several places.

“How do I know he is not the enemy?” Byleth’s cold voice gave Lorenz enough sense, through his concussion, to defend himself.

“I am not.” He announced as he stood next to his mount, lance in his grasp and magic flaring in his palms, “My father is wrong. I know he is wrong to side with the Empire.” Lorenz gripped his lance before kneeling before his once Professor, “If you think I am a traitor, then strike me down! I am Lorenz Hellman Gloucester, and on my honour as a knight and a lord, I swear that I am no friend to the empire!”

He felt a hand on his shoulder after the proclamation and looked up, seeing the orphan girl he had once taken to confiding in, now grown as a woman, and a Knight.

“I know, Lorenz.” Byleth stood over him, bright hair gleaming as he offered the lord his hand, “Will you side with us? We aim to put an end to Edelgard’s tyranny.”

Without hesitation, he took the man’s hand firmly, lifting himself up, “I swear it to you, on my name and honour, I will see the empire in ruins before I abandon my friends ever again.”

Byleth smiled, “I am glad to hear it.” And clapped his student over the back before moving aside. Lorenz felt his heart swell at the sight behind him, his Academy friends, grouped together and staring at him. Claude was elated to see him and quickly strolled over, clamping their hands together before giving his back a firm slap.

“It is good to have you back on board, Lorenz, even if it was after kicking your ass off that horse.”

Lorenz scoffed at the man, “Please, Claude, you embarrass yourself. Twas not I who fell from his Wyvern moments ago.” He smirked, a cat like grin curling his lips upwards, and Claude gave the noble a glare in response. Soon, the two of them were laughing, and you smiled from the side lines before turning to the Professor. You hadn’t come to just participate in the battle. Lorenz turned away from Claude with a smile and looked over at you, blood leaking over your collar bone as you handed the man a scroll. He couldn’t hear the exchange, but he saw the seriousness on your face all the same. You weren’t the carefree girl he once knew anymore. He waited patiently by his horse for the two of you to finish your conversation before he approached, leading his pitch-black mare by her bit. Before you could jump back onto your Pegasus, Lorenz caught your arm gently.

“Forgive my brashness, my dear, but I wish to thank you.” He waited for you to face him before continuing, “Your intervention very well saved my life. I could not be more thankful for your actions. I am indebted to you.” He placed his hand over his heart before bowing at the waist, low, in a sign of gratitude. What he didn’t expect was for you to start laughing softly.

“I never thought I would see the day that Lorenz Hellman Gloucester was all grown up and thanking a commoner with sincerity.” You stood before him, clad in shining armour, hair pulled away from your face and silver winged helmet sat under your arm, the emblem of the church burning bright on your chest, “You have grown so much since I last saw you, and your hair…It is much nicer.” You teased gently, watching his expression turn shocked.

“Ah…yes w-well.” He stiffened his posture and rubbed his gauntlet covered hands together, “You have changed a great deal too. And you are a Knight of Seiros now, are you not?” Lorenz looked at your mount and pointed at it’s nose, “Yet you still have your foul tempered Percy.” He chortled as the Pegasus snorted, foot stomping against the cobbles.

Holding the reigns tighter, you laughed gently, “Of course. He is how I managed to get away that day, after all… It was a horrible battle, but I am glad to see you safe, Lorenz. I am even happier to be fighting by your side…Perhaps we could pick up our little chats once more? I…” You swallowed, “I have missed them and now you seem like you have many stories to tell.”

Lorenz felt his tongue go heavy, all eloquence disappearing from him, “But of course!” He perhaps sounded a little too eager, and he took to stroking his mare’s nose gently to ease his worries, “I would like nothing more. I have…missed you, (Y/N), more than you know.” He smiled and tucked a piece of hair behind his ear, the long lavender strands flattering to his high cheek bones and long, straight nose. They were features you had not noticed before.

“I have missed it all. The duties of a knight are far from the glamour of the fables.” Carefully, avoiding the cut on Percy’s back, you climbed back onto your mount, and smiled, “Shall I meet you tonight? I can help you with her injuries too.”

Lorenz nodded slowly, “Yes…Tonight sounds lovely.”

“Then I will see you tonight, on the edge of camp after dinner. I have a salve for those kinds of scrapes.” You reared Percy upwards, the mount galloping lopsided before taking off into the skies, leaving a gale of dust in his wake. Lorenz looked skywards and smiled, touching the rose on his armour before mounting back up to follow his classmates back to their encampment.

True to your word, you made sure to show up after dinner had been served, on the outskirts of the camp, where the mounts were being kept for the time being. Makeshift tether posts had been fashioned from wood and most of the animals were laid around or stood idly chewing oats and hay. The Wyverns were on the other side of camp, and for good measure. You placed your small bag of brushes and care equipment down by Percy before taking away the linen and salve you had already applied to his flank. The wound had closed nicely, and you sighed with relief before replacing the linen and taking hold of your comb, undoing the ribbons from the Pegasus’ hair before setting to work combing his mane.

“I’m glad to see you still have such talent.” Lorenz made you jump, and you smiled at the noble, who was leading his mare with worry, “I hope you have plenty of that salve. She may be a war horse, but she can only take so many cuts herself.” He tutted softly as he tethered his horse, fingers gentle around her legs as he looked at the cuts. A few were still seeping blood.

With a deep breath you went for your bag and pulled out a thick, green salve, “This should help her heal just fine.” You smiled and handed the man the jar.

He cringed after unscrewing the lid, “By the Goddess…What is in this?” He pinched his nose dramatically at the pungent scent of the salve.

“You’re like a child that doesn’t want bitter medicine.” You took the jar from him and looked at his mare’s legs before pushing your fingers into the herby mixture and spreading it over the little cuts, “It’s a human salve. It works just as well on animals, you know. You’ll just have to wrap her legs to stop her licking at it.” Gently you handed him the jar and wiped the mixture left on your fingers into the grass. Lorenz stuck his finger into the mixture and hummed softly, setting to work covering the cuts on his horse’s legs in salve before wrapping them gently in linen bandages. You watched over Percy’s back as Lorenz worked, his face soft as he cared for his steed. You hid behind Percy’s wing as you blushed, Lorenz chortling at your staring throughout the night.

No one commented on the braids in his steed’s hair, nor the matching purple bows with your Pegasus.

The war was over before he plucked up the guts to speak to you about his feelings. Whenever he gazed at you in the sky, or spoke to you, his heart swelled, and he felt deep down, that he was not worthy of a woman like you. He waited idly in the corridor as you finished your reports to Seteth, the man still the right-hand man, simply to the new Archbishop Byleth now. The door opened and Lorenz swallowed, adjusting his cravat and purple waistcoat, brushing the intricate gold embroidery before pulling at his sleeve cuffs, the puffy material flaring around his wrists.

“Milady?” You turned to look at him curiously and smiled, “Do you have a moment to speak? I would like to take you somewhere.” He confessed before offering his arm, nervously tucking his hair behind his ear as he so often did.

“Of course.” Carefully, you took his arm, dressed in a plain shirt with a black bow around the neck, and heavy black under trousers. Your boots were thick and dark as well. These were no doubt the clothes you wore under your armour, “Where are we going?”

Lorenz smiled, placing his hand over your own in the crook of his arm, “The Goddess Tower.” You said nothing else but followed him, chattering away about an ancient tome. Granted, he was curious about the magic within it.

The tower was cool in the evening, and Lorenz took a breath as you both reached the top, looking out at the loch around the Monastery.

“I have something to confess to you.” He took each of your hands, linking your fingers, much like he had done at the dance last night, “I have fallen in love with you. I could not find the courage to tell you during the war, or even before that. I thought I was not worthy of you. I have changed, I know this to be true, but I am…You are wonderous, beautiful, gallant and graceful. As a youngster…even a year ago, I was not a kind man and…I just wished for you to know.”

Your mouth dropped open but sensing Lorenz’s intention to move away, you gripped his hands tightly and smiled, cheeks warming, “I love you too.”

The man before you was stunned, mouth open wide, his hair flopping over his cheek before he reached into his pocket and presented a ring, dropping to a knee after flicking his long lilac hair back from his face, “Then, milady, would you do me the honour of being my wife?” He held out a golden, ornate ring, and you nodded with a grin, letting Loren’z magic roughened hands sip the ring on. He pressed a kiss to it before rising, giddy and smiling.

“You have done me the highest honour, my love…yes my love, my one and only!” Lorenz reached for you, holding you close by the waist, “You will be the most cherished woman in all of Fodlan, my dearest, my gem, my love!” He laughed brightly and took you by the waist, spinning you, still looming over you with his great height.

“Lorenz! Put me down!” You laughed as your feet were placed firmly back on the floor.

“My lady you will know nothing but luxury, or my name is not Lorenz Hellman Gloucester! By the Goddess, I love you…” He took hold of your cheeks, “Status, crests, nobility. None of it matters. What matters is what is inside. I know that now…thanks to you, my love.” He smiled and you leaned forwards, kissing him, and stilling his rambling.

“I love you, Lorenz, and I have since that very first time we brushed our mounts together. You were never a stuffy noble to me after that…and I suspected you felt the same.”

“Truly? …” He flushed, “And to think I waited this long. How embarrassing…” His pale cheeks went red and you kissed one softly before pushing his hair away and hugging him tightly, “My Lady Gloucester…It suits you.” His soft smile was infectious.

Giggling you laid your head against his shoulder, “The title doesn’t matter, Lorenz. You could be a stable boy and I would still marry you.”

The Dark Knight simply leaned down to kiss you once more, and pulled away with embarrassment, “I apologise my lady, that was rude.” For someone so vocal, the man was prudish in your presence.

“Don’t apologise, my love.” You teased and he only blushed deeper.

“It was tactless, and you deserve…” Lorenz blathered, rubbing your hips softly.

You fixed the Lord with a look before taking his hand, “Hush now, let us break the news. We can’t stay in the presence of the Goddess Tower forever, no matter the rumours surrounding it.” You led the man to the stairs, and with a soft whisper of thank you to the Goddess, you followed your betrothed out of the stone, smiling at his blathering about the wedding.

**Author's Note:**

> Catch me over on Tumblr at: https://sp00kworm.tumblr.com/
> 
> Thank you for reading this not at all self-indulgent piece! I love Lorenz and I will die before I let him not have a piece of writing from me. Comments and kudos are both greatly appreciated!


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